One way to prevent car theft is to remove the steering wheel of a car when the car is not in use. This prevents potential thieves from being able to drive the vehicle, even if they are able to get the vehicle started. Even so, would-be car thieves may attach their own steering wheel to the steering wheel column of a vehicle from which the owner has removed the vehicle's steering wheel, and thus bypass this theft prevention measure. To prevent this from happening, a vehicle owner can install a steering column lock on the steering column of his or her vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,527,293, entitled “Lockable Steering Wheel Quick-Release Unit” and which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a lock mechanism for installation between a steering wheel and a steering wheel column that allows for quick-release of the steeling wheel from the steering column. The lock covers a portion of the steering column such that a different steering wheel cannot be installed on the column without first removing the lock.
Prior to the invention disclosed herein, it was not appreciated that even with the use of a lock mechanism such as that disclosed in the '293 Patent, a car thief could use pliers, a wrench or some other mechanism to grasp the lock mechanism and selectively rotate the steering column, thus enabling the thief to steer the vehicle without a steering wheel and despite the presence of the lock.